Repayment
by Kyarorain
Summary: Misty wonders how she should repay Tracey for his thoughtful gift while Tracey struggles with his feelings for her. Orangeshipping.


Repayment

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iPod Challenge ficlet done to "Atarashii Tomodachi"

I do not own Pokémon. Game Freak and Nintendo do.

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Tracey lay on his bed, gazing at the night sky beyond the window. His thoughts had again turned to the redheaded gym leader of Cerulean City. A few weeks ago, Misty had gone to Hoenn for a Togepi festival and come back with her Togepi noticeably absent. She had explained about Togepi evolving and leaving to guard the Mirage Kingdom and the other Togepi living there.

Though Misty hadn't said much about Togepi since then, it was clear that she was extremely sad about letting the little egg Pokémon go. Every so often, he had heard her sighing and seen her sadness plain as day hidden within her aquamarine eyes. It hurt too much for her to even talk about Togepi. She was like a mother who had let her child go and knew she probably wouldn't see them again. Togetic was a very long way from home after all.

Then Tracey's Marill had laid an egg and Tracey immediately knew what he should do with it. It wasn't meant to be a replacement for Togepi, but simply a gift to ease her heart somewhat. The delight on Misty's face had made him feel incredibly happy.

Not long after that, Tracey had begun to realise his feelings for her had subtly changed. He couldn't stop thinking about Misty's smiling face, the way her copper hair glowed in the sunlight and how her eyes sparkled when she was happy.

The Pokémon watcher sighed in frustration and got up from the bed to close the curtains. What was he thinking? Misty was a friend and nothing more. Could she really see him as anything more than a friend? He was afraid to ask her for fear of what it would do to their relationship. Was he really... falling in love with her?

***

Misty burrowed down beneath the bedsheets, wrapping an arm around the sleeping Azurill as it snuggled up to her chest. She was so deeply thankful to Tracey for his considerate gift and loved her new Pokémon very much. It was true that Azurill couldn't completely take the place of Togepi, but it helped to relieve her sadness over letting Togetic go.

It was all thanks to Tracey that she had Azurill. Misty considered repaying him somehow, but what kind of gift could possibly compare to what he had given her? It would have to be something really special. While she was thinking about it, she drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, she awoke with a scarlet face, trying to comprehend the latest dream she'd just had. In her dream, she had been repaying Tracey... with a kiss. The flustered redhead got out of bed and hastily got dressed, trying to push the memory aside. "It didn't mean anything," she babbled to herself, furiously tying her hair in a ponytail and gritting her teeth. "It was just a dream. It didn't mean a thing!"

Yet, the memory of that dream wouldn't stop pestering her. It got so bad that Misty ended up having to give out four Cascade Badges that morning and blamed her lack of concentration. After the morning battles were over, she ate a quick lunch and set out for a walk, hoping the fresh air would clear her head.

What Misty didn't expect was that she would have a visitor. As she was walking away from the gym, she caught sight of a green-haired male in a green shirt and red shorts. Misty stopped short, her face flushing deep red again.

"Misty." Tracey had spotted her and hurried over. "Professor Oak let me off for the day so I thought I'd drop by. Does your sister need help with anything?" Now that was probably a bit of a lame excuse, he supposed.

"Uh..." Misty bit her bottom lip, feeling awkward. "I don't know. I suppose you'd have to ask her," she said lamely.

"Right..." Tracey shuffled his feet. "You going somewhere?"

Misty looked up at him, only to hastily look away again when the memory of that dream came to her. It occurred to her he really was kind of cute. Those lips did look rather nice. She furiously shook her head. No! What was she thinking?

"Um," Misty finally spoke, "I just wanted to say thanks again for what you do. It was lovely and I appreciated it." She still couldn't think about what to give him.

"I'm glad it made you so happy," Tracey said. "I didn't like seeing you so sad. Even though you hid it, I could still see it. I wanted to put that lovely smile back on your face."

Misty blushed even deeper. Had he really just said that?

Tracey seemed to realise he'd said a bit too much there and flushed as well. "Uh, I mean, it is a pretty smile and..."

"You want to come in?" Misty interrupted him, glancing toward the gym. She didn't feel like having awkward moments outside when there were people around. It would be embarrassing if people overheard. "I was going to go for a walk, but now you're here, maybe we'll find something to do together."

Tracey nodded and the pair walked back to the building. Neither of them said a word about that uncomfortable moment afterwards.

Misty would later present Tracey with a portfolio of sketches done by a Pokémon watcher, knowing how much Tracey was into the profession. She was aware of her growing feelings for him and his only increased with each passing day.

The time soon came when the two would share a kiss at just the right moment and their relationship changed forever.


End file.
